I’ve been doing lots more night trail riding over the past 6 months so have bitten the bullet and bought an Exposure Six Pack to replace my MK2 Strada. My question is, will I still need a helmet light with the Six Pack?

I’ve always used helmet lights with the Strada, but the helmet light is very aged too, so is also up for replacement potentially. Wondering if the extra several thousand lumens from the Six Pack over the Strada negates the need for another light…

Thoughts welcome, just not about how I should’ve bought insert your favourite light here as it’s already in the post!

I’ve got a Maxx-D, which is good enough on it’s own on trails I know well. However, anything with tight corners or switchbacks really needs a helmet light just for that glance into them to make sure that they are clear. (Also, if I need to walk my bike for any reason, a bar light is less useful than a helmet light.)

yes. so you can see round corners.

A hairpin in the dark is a nightmare if you can’t see round it.

I prefer a helmet light too, particularly on narrow, twisty trails. Being able to look around corners helps a lot.

No need for it to be amazingly powerful or huge battery life. Switch it on only when needed.

I’d say you definitely don’t need one, but you may like having one.

Probably also depends what kind of trails you’re riding. Switchback hairpin descents are more likely to need a head mounted light than gently wiggling trails.

Yes. The Four4th scorch is great value. I use it paired with a really (really, really, really) bright bar light and while I don’t notice it when I’m looking straight ahead I’m happy to have it every time I want to look around a corner.

I’m a sucker to be honest so if I replace the helmet light, it’ll be an Exposure – Joystick or Diablo if I’m feeling flush/there’s a good deal on eBay!

Most of the trails I ride at night are familiar and more tech than switchback descents so might suck it and see once the bar mounted coke can arrives. The nights aren’t super dark at the moment anyway so probably the best time to run the risk of being under-lit.

Yes I’d say you do if riding anything twisty and steep ish.

I’ve got a maxx d on the bars which is really bright – but when you go round a sharp corner there’s no visibility until you’ve turned into it.

I’ve got an Axis on my helmet which is ok, but it hasn’t massively improved on the much cheaper Moon Vortex Pro I had before. Plus Moon have now upped the lumen count to 1300 lumens I think.

So I’d buy a Moon Vortex Pro as the cheaper helmet option now – or for a more expensive one I’d be inclined to try the Fourth Scorch mentioned above. It’s a bit ugly but if the lumens and battery life claims are correct then it should be awesome.

I’ve got a Six Pack on the bars and a Zenith on the lid, absolutely superb. So much so that two of the lads I ride with went out and bought the same combination. I’ll tend to run the Zenith on low or even off if riding double track or fire road sections.

What it does to is put you in to a sort of lumens arms race as if you ride with others you’ll just wipe out their lights until they get sick of riding with a bloody great shadow in front of them and go and get something even more powerful than you. Not that there’s much to outgun a Six Pack at the moment I don’t think.

Edit. The Zenith replaced a Mk2 Diablo which to be honest was still very good, just fancied a new light. You’ll be able to pick up a Diablo on eBay at a good price I reckon.

I’ve got last years Diablo and maxx d.
I rarely use it with the diablo as the MD drowns it out, no switchbacks on my local routes but I have no problems with corners due to the amount of light it throws out.

I once did the end of Innerleithen red with just a bar light. it has loads of big bombholes – was terrible as you had no idea what was coming over the next mini-summit

I’ve got the latest six pack and a 3 year old Diablo. Whilst I don’t need the helmet light, I wouldn’t ride without it. If nothing else it’s a backup in case anything happens to the one on the bars.

I do tend to think they’re a very good combination though. The six pack is very bright and has a great beam pattern. It just floods the area with light on full power but it’s also good to be able to see wherever you look with the helmet light.

I’m not so sure the dogging fraternity of the South Downs like the very bright light combo too much though. I’ve seen plenty of surprised faces in the car parks at night!

I’ve got last years Diablo and maxx d.

This, but maybe the year befores version, as said, the helment light is good for looking around corners or seeing where you going to land when jumping or dropping.

definately need a head torch for the trial riding i do at night, its good to make you look well ahead and look around corners.

I find a second light source also add “field of depth” to trail obstacles, while a single light source can make them look deceptively flat at times. Although there appear to be two groups on this, the first that I am in who notice a considerable difference, and others who don’t and think we are making it up.

Head light is more important in my opinion. In the day you’d want to see where you are going so why not at night?

I’m not so sure the dogging fraternity of the South Downs like the very bright light combo too much though. I’ve seen plenty of surprised faces in the car parks at night!

But don’t pretend that Beam pattern 4 didn’t get you the result you were after at the bottom of Ditchling Beacon carpark @painey

I didn’t mean for flash mode to come on, honest…

Yeah you Six Pack owners should be made to take a test before you’re let loose with them. A few of my crowd have them and I personally think they’re a flippin unnecessary nuisance. And to stay on topic, yeah you need a helmet mounted light for all the reasons mentioned plus when your antisocial pride and joy goes kaput.

I thought I didn’t need a head mounted light in addition to a powerful bar light… Until I got the first rock drop and realised I couldn’t see any part of the landing as it was all in shadow.

I’d ridden it loads before so it was well within my skill level but riding it effectively with my eyes shut was something I won’t do again.

I have a maxxd qnd my riding mate runs a six pack. Both of us have joysticks on the head, essential if riding natural trails i say.

Head light is more important in my opinion. In the day you’d want to see where you are going so why not at night?

I wouldn’t ride with only helmet mounted, serious lack of depth perception since all the shadows lie right behind the objects that cast them with the light so close to your eyeline.

That said, I also would go off road with only one light, having had a light fail – I’d have been walking a long way in the dark that say if there hadn’t been a second light there! And why not put the other light in a different spot!

Head light is more important in my opinion. In the day you’d want to see where you are going so why not at night?

+1

I run an Exposure Strava on my bars and a standard CREE 2 beam (with the battery in my pack/pocket) on my helmet.

For me both bar and helmet lights are important. Comes home to roost when only one works and you should test it to experience it. Helmet only stuffs depth perception to a point where I’d be limiting my riding quite a lot, and bar only doesn’t enable you to see what the helmet light would, no matter what you do. Going very powerful on one doesn’t make up for not having the other.

Thread resurrection…

For any of you using a USE helmet mounted light, have you been able to get their TAP function working?  I’ve tried a few times today on a new Zenith and can’t get it working.  All the different flash patterns work as per the user guide, but not TAP.

Yes.

Always have 2 lights.

But also a helmet light for all the techy bits. Steep down or up, with a bend and a bar light is next to useles.

TAP function worked fine on my diablo when lid mounted. I’ve turned it off though as I also use it as a just in case bar light and tap really wouldn’t help there

I’ve a maxxd, joystick and diablo.

Maxxd + joystick is best combo. Joystick is more spotty so does not get drowned out like the disable does. It’s also lighter on the lid.

Prefer riding with both a bar and helmet light

I turned tap off on my diablo as it was cycling down from fully bright when going down trails, not sure if I was clipping things or head banging too much.

Forgot about this thread. Ended up getting a Joystick for the helmet, alongside the Six Pack. Not doing much in the way of proper night rides now it’s summer (ish) so will properly see what it’s like come Autumn.

One other question though, how do you attach a helmet light to a helmet with MIPS? I’ve ordered an Oakley DRT5 to replace my Kask Rex which took a bit of a hit the other night, but didn’t quite clock that the MIPS lining thing might not play nice with the Joystick mounting. Anyone done it?

cheap GoPro type torch holder and sticky pad.

One other question though, how do you attach a helmet light to a helmet with MIPS?

I’ve managed to slide the exposure bolt on type mount under the MIPS in the past. My Bell helmet came with a gopro mount that fixes into one of the vents on top, so I bought the exposure gopro mount attachment and use that now.

Tap isn’t great on my Axis – so it’s permanently off – pretty easy to press the button on the back of the light anyway.

I like the Axis after some initial doubts and having had a software update. It’s really handy – last night I went out biking with a road slog to / from the trails and it was easy just to throw it in the bars rather than moving the Maxx d mount over from the other bike.

My only slight doubt is battery life in cold weather on the Axis. Still wonder if the Fourth Scorch would have been a better buy for a helmet light.

I’ve got a Giro Chronicle helmet with mips- doesn’t cause an issue with the exposure mount. I do have another mount for a different light that would probably work as an alternative though – that slides into a gopro stick on pad.

@abingham,

my exposure joystick (I think) came with a helmet mount that splits in to two with a few different length nylon screws. The bit inside the helmet fits above the MIPs & is fine (with my helmets at least).

I would second the four4th Scorch, its a great price and oodles of light.